UTC athletic director choices down to three

The search for the next University of Tennessee at Chattanooga athletic director is down to three candidates, interim chancellor Grady Bogue said Monday.

The search committee met over the weekend to interview its 10 finalists for the position. Bogue and chancellor-elect Steve Angle will interview the final three next week, Bogue said.

"They moved to three candidates last week and those three candidates will come onto campus next week, and at that point, just like the chancellor search, those names will be made public," he said.

Bogue said Angle, still senior vice president at Wright State University, has been involved throughout the process. Angle won't be on the clock at UTC until July 1, so he can't officially hire the new athletic director, but he will choose the AD.

"It's going to be his selection," Bogue said. "This is Steve's decision because this person is going to work with him. If I'm asked for my point of view, as I was [in an email from Angle] this morning, I'll express that point of view and get out of the way."

There's a great deal happening with UTC athletics at the moment. Once an athletic director is hired, he or she will have to move quickly to hire men's and women's basketball coaches.

In addition, the Southern Conference is in a state of flux following the departures of Appalachian State, Georgia Southern and the College of Charleston, and decisions have to be made about the league's future.

Does all that affect the type of AD who is hired? Does it necessitate hiring someone with more experience?

"We're not going to hire anybody that's not experienced," Bogue said. "We've got three top candidates, and I'm not worried for one minute that they'll be able to walk in and do the work. But they are going to have important work to do."

There is important work to be done this week as well. Bogue and interim athletic director Laura Herron will be in Charlotte, N.C., on Wednesday meeting with the rest of the SoCon's decision-makers to discuss candidates to join the league.